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The last remaining hurdle to the demolition and redevelopment of Paignton’s eyesore Crossways shopping centre has been cleared.
Torbay MP Kevin Foster has revealed that Royal Mail has finally withdrawn its objection to the multi-million-pound redevelopment of the derelict 1960s concrete shopping centre.
Only the Royal Mail remained to be convinced after the owner of the shopping centre – Gaelic Investments – came to an agreement to hand it over to Torbay Council.
It is understood the objection was over access to the Royal Mail sorting and delivery office alongside the Crossways site.
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But the objection has now been formally withdrawn after talks between the council and Royal Mail.
In a letter to Mr Foster, Royal Mail said it had now reached an agreement that will safeguard its Universal Service Obligation to the TQ3 and TQ4 postcode areas served by the Paignton depot.
The USO means Royal Mail is required to provide a universal postal service, including delivery and collection of letters, six days per week, Monday to Saturday.
(Image: Steve Pope)
Mr Foster hailed the Royal Mail announcement as ‘great news’, following the owner’s agreement to the terms of a Compulsory Purchase Order.
“The path is clear for Torbay Council to acquire the site,” said Mr Foster. “Paving the way for both demolition of the existing eyesore and the construction of a new regeneration project aimed at providing housing, with retail and leisure uses on the frontages.
“The sorting office and telephone exchange next to the shopping centre are not affected by this plan and will remain.”
A total of £13.4m of capital funding from the Government for Paignton from the Future High Streets Fund has already been confirmed, and the regeneration of the Crossways site is one of the projects it will help to fund.
Mr Foster went on: “I am delighted to hear Royal Mail has withdrawn its objection.
“When I met Royal Mail earlier this year it was clear their objections were issues which could easily be resolved through a sensible negotiation with Torbay Council as owner if the CPO succeeded.
“With funding from the Government’s Future High Streets Fund already confirmed, there should be nothing to stop the demolition work getting under way quickly, work I know many Paignton residents will be only too happy to lend a hand with!”
The compulsory purchase – for a so-far undisclosed amount – was rubber-stamped before a scheduled court hearing over the ownership of the centre could go ahead.
The announcement brought to an end decades of decline for the centre – which was once a bustling state-of-the-art shopping experience.
In recent years, its 30 small shop units and large supermarket have closed one by one, leaving just one charity shop, a cafe and a small gym.
The centre’s dingy stairwells have been taken over by drug users and street drinkers.
Gaelic Investments, which bought Crossways in 2009, had been reluctant to relinquish its ownership of Crossways, and was believed to be still receiving rent from at least one of the former tenants long after the business closed down.
A compulsory purchase order was first made in September 2020 after no development proposals had been put forward since its purchase.
The council wants to replace it with 89 sheltered and extra-care flats, with shops and restaurants below.
